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Dear readers, long time no see. Life has been busy but I’m back! I update my Instagram account daily so check me out at @rhythmjapan! After a long break, we are back with some interesting restaurant reviews and food festival reports! Today, let’s talk about restaurants here in Japan. I’m not talking just about Japanese cuisine, but also international cuisine prepared by world-renowned and celebrity Japanese chefs. I have visited Kawasaki’s casual French cuisine and wine specialty restaurant “Bistro Cocotte”, run by celebrity chef Hideaki Okada. So let’s find out a bit about Chef Okada! Chef: Hideaki Okada Born on June 23rd, 1970 in Okayama, Osaka. Started studying karate and…

It’s almost the end of the summer and what’s a better way to say good bye than by watching the fireworks light up the last of the summer night sky? One of the most popular firework events is Yokohama Sparkling Twilight, so that’s where we headed out. Though our main reason for coming to Yokohama was watching fireworks, we couldn’t miss the chance to explore this picturesque city, so we got there a bit early to look around. We started out with a walk across the boardwalk and the pier so we could enjoy the view of the famous Yokohama cityline that featured the half-moon shaped hotel, Yokohama Grand Intercontinental,…

The summer has been ruling Tokyo for awhile and along with it all the summer festivals! Usually, other bloggers write about all the major festivals, so sometimes it’s easy to forget the not-so-major-yet-unique local summer festivals. There is this cool place located in Shinagawa, called Shinagawa Shrine, though not so widely known, it boasts a few unique features, including the Shinagawa Mt. Fuji, an artificial mountain built to imitate Mt. Fuji! The view from the top of the shrine is truly breathtaking! (Check out my video blog Part 2 for the walkthrough the festival.) Of course, summer festivals in Japan are associated with colorful traditional yukatas, really, you shouldn’t attend…

The entire history of world-renown animation series, Sailor Moon, created by Naoko Takeuchi was made into an exhibit that opened last month at Mori Museum in Roppongi. Though the Sailor Moon exhibit has already closed, the Mori Museum itself is famous for holding many incredible exhibits so make sure to check them out when you are in Tokyo. http://www.mori.art.museum/eng/ The Sailor Moon exhibit featured the story from its earlier roots in manga, idea boards, earliest sketches, character designs, transitioning into anime, all of the official merchandise ever released, life-sized characters replicas and videos from each of the anime opening themes. To me, growing up watching these series in the States,…

So let me talk to you about something very fun – Nico Nico Super Conference! It’s very much like a Japanese culture conventions outside Japan (anime cons and etc) but it’s also so much more than that! So what’s Nico Nico? It’s a video-sharing website in Japan, similar to YouTube except for comments are overlaid directly onto the video in sync with the viewers during playback. Nico Nico Super Conference is a convention taking place once every year with an idea of recreating the “Nico Nico Video” in real time with not only the users but also various exhibitors, such as Guinness World Record, Karaoke competitions, Kabuki theater, Rock concerts,…

I think it’s about time that we talked about Japanese sake! Since there are so many varieties in Japan and most of them are written completely in Japanese, it might get overwhelming when we try to decide which one would suit our palate. Let me introduce you to a few basic sake readily available at convenience stores and liquor stores here in Japan! Liquor Store Sake ■Jozen Mizunogotoshi An ideal introduction sake. Smoot, light and fruity with a pleasant aftertaste. Alcohol content 14% ■Sawanoi Daikaraikuchi A true dry sake(+10 dryness). Super dry and light. Alcohol content 15% ■Urakasumi Junmai A smooth and fruity sake with a hint of roasted nuts.…

So… Let’s talk about food ramen! We are back at JR Tokyo Station to explore the highly-praised Ramen Street! So pretty much it’s a section of Tokyo Station which features different types of ramen from all over Japan! Though there is no English Guide Map to locating the street, it’s very easy to find! Take Yaesu Central Exit Walk straight till you see the stairs going down to “First Avenue Tokyo Station” Take the stairs down and turn right Follow the signs And there we are! Ramen street features ramen from different parts of Japan and you can choose the one you like from the menu/map located by the entrance!…

So let’s talk about baseball, one of Japan’s favorite sports. Pastime is very important in life of the hardworking Japanese society and going to sport events is one of the most popular pastimes. Today I am taking you to one of the legendary baseball games in Japan’s history. Hanshin Tigers from Osaka vs Yomiuri Giants from Tokyo! Since we are located in Tokyo, we are going to see this legendary game on the home field of Giants, Tokyo Dome! Though I personally have never been to a baseball game, I had a lot of fun watching my first one here at Tokyo Dome. Let’s talk about food! The food at…

Famous all around the world, cherry blossom viewing or hanami (in Japanese) is the highlight of the spring season here in Japan. Usually cherry trees start blooming around the end of March and through April, with myriad spots all around Tokyo. For Japanese people, cherry blossom viewing (hanami) signifies the beginning of Spring and is great cause for celebration. There are many types of hanami including the traditional picnic-style, walk-style, restaurant-style, temple/shrine style and etc. I will introduce you to each type, but mainly, for the purpose of this blog, I will focus on the walk-style hanami at the famous local spot Meguro River. Walk-style Hanami To get to Meguro…

The winter is coming to an end and for those of us who live in Tokyo area and love winter sports, it’s the last time to squeeze in some snow days! I would like to introduce you to one of Japan’s famous ski resorts, Naeba Prince ski resort that’s located about 3 hours away by car, in Niigata. Aside from its close proximity to Tokyo, the great thing about this ski resort is it’s foreign-friendly atmosphere! The maps, menus and many of the services are in English! Though I personally don’t ski or snowboard, I enjoy the winter scenery and making snowmen! There is something magical about the snow scenery,…